


Fright Night

by space_squirrel



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Halloween, Mass Effect 1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 19:03:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12588528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/space_squirrel/pseuds/space_squirrel
Summary: Sophie Shepard is dragged to an Alliance fundraiser on Halloween, and Kaidan learns a secret (or so she thought).





	Fright Night

  
"You know, of every possible thing I thought could happen today, I never really expected to be wandering through an abandoned fucking murder house chasing our dumb ass friend," Shepard mutters, shaking her head as she rounds another dark corner.

"Oh, come on Shepard," Kaidan teases, elbowing her side. "You don't really believe those stories do you?"

She shoots him a dirty look. "Not the point, Kaidan."

Suddenly, she comes to a halt, and Kaidan can't help but slam into her back, not expecting her abrupt stop. "Ow, Shepard, what the—"

She cuts him off, _shhhh_ ing at him to shut up with a wave of her hand as she peeks around the corner, clearly disturbed by whatever lay ahead.

It’s a well-done haunted house - Kaidan will give them that. Not only did they choose an (allegedly) haunted building on the Citadel for the event, but every room so far has been filled with cheap thrills, jump scares, dedicated actors, and vid-level props and special effects.

And though Sophie had insisted she was not a fan of Halloween, she’d been a pretty good sport throughout the entire evening; even (reluctantly) donning the skeleton bodysuit Ashley had picked out, though she’d drawn the line at full facepaint, opting instead for a few simple contoured lines and smoky eyeshadow giving her face a gaunt, skeletal look.

The longer they were in this haunted house, though, the more agitated she was becoming - especially after Joker had lit up when they saw the arrow pointing them to the next themed room (as if he knew what was coming), and, with a loud guffaw, had taken off ahead of them, challenging Shepard to _keep up, if she dared._

Kaidan peers over her head, wondering what has got the two of them so wound up and immediately bursts into laughter. There, in the room ahead, is a very intricately crafted Carnival of Horrors, filled with mirrors and flashing carnival lights. The smell of popcorn and rotting apples fills the air, clinging to the thick fog floating across the floor; maniacal laughter echoing through the room. Every so often you can hear the mumbling cries of the actors, the shuffling of their feet, the shrill screams in the distance of their latest victims.

And Commander Sophie Shepard, N7, Butcher of Torfan, First Human Spectre, is staring wide eyed at the entrance, where a gaping clown's mouth beckoned them to _come play a game_ ; white as a sheet and looking absolutely terrified of the prospect of walking through this room.

"Shit, Soph," Kaidan murmurs, glancing around before snaking an arm around her waist and pressing a quick kiss to her temple. "Don't tell me the great Commander Shepard is afraid of—"

"DON'T SAY IT,” she hisses, elbowing him in the ribs, her eyes never leaving the carnival scene ahead of them. Kaidan stifles a laugh as she paces the small space, staring straight into the gaping mouth of the entrance way ahead of them. “Fuck, why did Joker have to dart off like that? Who even knew he could _move_ that god damned fast? You’d never know it by how slowly he does anything I ask him to do...” she trails off, turning and looking wistfully behind them at the graveyard they’d just left behind.

Suddenly, she stands up straight, a look of defiance flashing across her face and Kaidan groans inwardly: he’d recognizing her “Yes-This-Is-A-Terrible-Idea, But-I’ve-Made-Up-My-Mind” face from a mile away.

“I don’t even care if Joker gets stuck in this house of horrors forever, I’ve had enough of this _not_ -fun-draiser to last me a lifetime,” she says, turning on her heel and taking two steps backwards before Kaidan catches her wrist.

“Soph, you can’t go back out that way.”

“Why the hell not?” She asks, eyes flashing in annoyance. He shakes his head, pointing down a narrow hallway between the two rooms.

“The Chicken’s Exit is the only way out. They’ve literally designed each room so you can’t backtrack. The door on the other end won’t open.”

She throws her hands up in exasperation. “I’m going to fucking kill Hackett,” she mutters, deepening her voice to imitate her superior. “It’s a fundraiser for orphaned children on the Citadel, Sophie. It’s very important to the Alliance that we have our best there, and that means you.”

Kaidan wraps an arm around her shoulder, hiding his grin in her hair as he presses a second kiss to her head. “Aw, come on, has tonight really been that bad?”

“Yes,” she replies sullenly, then suddenly smirks. “Though seeing you in this Captain Canuck getup certainly is a highlight.”

“Well, I’m glad to be of service then,” he smiles, before growing more serious. “But really, if you go out that exit you _know_ al-Jilani will be all over you.”

Shepard groans. “Why does everything I do have to turn into a media spectacle?”

“Because you’re Commander Fucking Shepard,” Kaidan quips, “and that’s _also_ why you’re going to grab my hand, close your eyes, and trust me to get you through the next room.”

She chews her bottom lip, glancing back and forth between the freakishly white clown face ahead, eyes red and glowing, and the chicken’s exit, before sucking in a deep breath of air and putting her game face on.

“Fine. But we don’t talk about this ever again,” she says, grabbing his offered hand and squeezing her eyes shut. “The world can _not_ find out I’m scared of clowns.”

 

* * *

 

“Did you see the three hanar dressed as ghosts?” Ashley asks, waving at the bartender as he approaches. “They were adorable!”

Now that the fundraiser is over and done with, they’d moved onto Sophie’s self-proclaimed favourite part of Halloween: the drinking and candy eating. Ashley had suggested they head to Purgatory, which was throwing its annual Halloween costume party, given that they were already dressed up from the earlier event.

Purgatory would not typically be high on Kaidan’s list of places to be spending an evening, but Shepard had enthusiastically agreed, quickly messaging the missing non-human crew members the information.

A few hours later, only Tali has yet to arrive, and Shepard is ordering a round for the group.

“I wonder what's taking Tali so long,” she murmurs, glancing around at the rest of her crew as she passes out the shots.

“She said she would be here soon, after she changed into a costume. She's quite enthusiastic about this human tradition of Hallow’s Eve” Liara replies, picking up the red-white-and-green drink and sniffing it experimentally, making a face. “What _is_ this?”

“A Zombie Brain Hemorrhage,” Ashley reads off the menu, shuddering as she does. “Lovely.”

Sophie shrugs. “When in Rome...” they clink glasses, and toss the shots back. Shepard drops her glass onto counter, picking up her beer and taking a long sip.

She looks like she's about to say something when a familiar voice pipes up behind them. “Hey guys, sorry I’m late!”

“Jeez, Tali,” Shepard says, turning to face her friend. “I thought you’d never— AHHHHHHRRRGGHHHHHH!”

Her beer smashes to the ground, and Sophie is high-tailing it across the bar before anyone can blink. Tali and Liara look after her in confusion, as Joker doubles over in hysterical laughter, wheezing as he tries to catch his breath. “Oh god, Tali, you really nailed it,” he gasps, slapping the quarian on the shoulder. “Let me buy you a drink.”

Tali turns to Kaidan, clearly confused. “I don’t understand,” she says, glancing over his shoulder and studying her reflection in the mirror. “Joker said a ‘Scary Clown’ is the best earth costume there is.” 

* * *

**Happy Halloween, everybody!!**


End file.
